Iron 883 Transforms into Amazing Cafe Racer

Under Construction

One of the best things about the Harley-Davidson Forums are the vast array of amazing builds our members are keen to show off. That uniqueness is on full display with member chris_b_owens and his Iron 883 cafe racer build, which has been under construction for several years now.

Photos: Harley-Davidson Forums

Drawing Inspiration

Amazingly enough, this project was chris_b_owens's very first attempt at turning wrenches in such a manner. He was inspired by Roland Sands and his unique creations and soon found a bone stock Harley to use as his canvas.

Photos: Harley-Davidson Forums

>>Join the conversation about this Iron 883 right here in HDForums.com.

Paper to Reality

Chris_b_owens proceeded to ride his stock Harley as is for a mere three weeks before the teardown began. His next step was to come up with a custom paint design, which he did himself, and find a professional painter to bring his sketches to reality.

Photos: Harley-Davidson Forums

>>Join the conversation about this Iron 883 right here in HDForums.com.

Wrench Away

With the tank and side covers off to the painter, chris_b_owens began working on everything else. At first, that included installing Roland Sands' clip-ons, a Burly Brand short cable kit, and headlight eyebrow. 

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>>Join the conversation about this Iron 883 right here in HDForums.com.

Parts Landslide

Next up were an RSD lever, stem bolt, Fort pre-load adjuster, Tracker grips, bar hole plugs, RSD clarity line derby cover, HD wrinkle black inspection cover, and some Chainsikle rearsets. And while he was at it, he did a half chop on the primary cover for added aesthetics.

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>>Join the conversation about this Iron 883 right here in HDForums.com.

Change for the Better

After installing an RSD 2-in-1 exhaust and more parts than we can possibly list here, the custom painted bits were finally back from the paint shop. Needless to say, they completely changed the look of this bike. And for the better, we'd say. 

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>>Join the conversation about this Iron 883 right here in HDForums.com.

Worth the Work

With everything fitted, it was time for the fun part - wiring and final assembly. Which, as we all know, is incredibly tedious work. But once it was all wrapped up, the end result was well worth the labor and various headaches.

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>>Join the conversation about this Iron 883 right here in HDForums.com.

Head Turner

Chris_b_owens was soon able to take his newly modified Harley out on its maiden voyage, where it performed admirably. And we're guessing it also turned a few more heads than before.

Photos: Harley-Davidson Forums

>>Join the conversation about this Iron 883 right here in HDForums.com.

Build and Rebuild

Over the course of the next few months, chris_b_owens spent quite a bit of time fine-tuning everything and changing out parts yet again. Which might seem a little crazy, but he was dead set on building the Harley exactly the way he wanted it.

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>>Join the conversation about this Iron 883 right here in HDForums.com.

Mission Accomplished

Eventually, he achieved that goal and is now able to ride his unique creation and simply enjoy it. But his long journey to get here is well worth reliving in its entirety. So be sure and head over here to do just that!

Photos: Harley-Davidson Forums

>>Join the conversation about this Iron 883 right here in HDForums.com.

For help with your maintenance and repair projects, please visit our How-to section right here in the forum